Chapter One: Hawaii Part One
~Futaro~
"Gooooood morning!" Yotsuba's cheery bright voice roused Futaro from his sleep.
"Quit sleeping on the couch like that! You'll catch a cold!" Nino's sharp tone prodded his consciousness as well.
"Wow, seeing you like that is making me sleepy too," Ichika's softer voice danced around his brain next.
"Get up, Uesugi-kun," Itsuki gently rocked his body upright. He blinked several times, his surroundings slowly came into focus. He wiped the drool from his face and lifted his head from the pearl white sofa he'd been sleeping on.
To the uninitiated, this would be the dream. Five beautiful girls all surrounded him, trying to wake him up. He could practically imagine the envious groaning from the men in his class. But to Futaro, these beautiful sisters existed for only one reason: to be a pain in the ass.
"What happened to the wedding?" He smacked his dry lips. The Same dream from the other night. He mused.
"Ehh!" Yotsuba blushed, grabbed a pillow, and buried her cherry-red face into it. "Who's wedding could it possibly be, Uesugi-san?"
"Aren't you getting a little ahead of yourself," Ichika smiled, hiding her blushed cheeks behind her raised sweater collar. Futaro's gaze lingered on the eldest sister. It was never wise to take Ichika's expressions at face value.
"Never mind that," Nino barked. Nino crossed her arms and pointed her chin towards the ceiling. "We need to decide already?"
"Decide what?"
"Our graduation trip, Futaro. You were the one who suggested it," Miku's said, in a voice that was barely louder than a whisper. Futaro thought it was fascinating how his ears managed to pick out her voice, especially with Nino in the room.
Yotsuba came over and plopped her body next to Futaro, cupped the sides of his face, and stared right into his eyes. Her bright electric blue eyes easily muted everything else in the room, pulling his attention to her. He inhaled sharply.
"Ueeeesuugiii-san? Are you okay?"
"I—yes," he turned away, feeling his cheeks grow warm. Yotsuba giggled and turned back to her sisters.
"For now, let's just point to where we want to go." She suggested with a cheerful chirp.
Yotsuba pulled out a large map from underneath their living room coffee table.
"We already know how this will end up, though," Ichika complained.
"Well, nothing else seems to be working," Itsuki shrugged, "alright, let's go on three!"
"One, two, three!"
The five girls at once pointed to random areas around the map.
"Paris? No way!" Miku sulked.
"What do you mean, 'no way!' It's Paris! The fashion capital of the world." Nino defended her choice.
"That is in no way interesting."
Nino scoffed, "It's better than Okinawa! That isn't even outside Japan. And we've already been there with Dad!"
Ichika raised her hand, "then how about New York. There's plenty of shopping you can do there, and I'm sure there are museums and stuff for Miku."
"That's a bit expensive, don't you think, Ichika?" Itsuki wondered.
Nino threw her hands up in the air. "Then what do you suggest?"
Nino, Itsuki, and Miku bickered back and forth, defending their choices based on their interests.
Futaro glanced at a nervous-looking Yotsuba who was trying to break apart the argument. Futaro felt like he wanted to do something too, but he was unsure how to stop three loud-mouthed sisters from arguing.
What would she do? He asked himself.
"Guys, why not a game of paper, rock, scissors?" Futaro said, raising his voice above the girls. "Best two out of three decides."
"Great idea, Uesugi-san!" Yotsuba leaped at the opportunity. "It's fair, and no one can complain."
Ichika shrugged her shoulders, "I don't see a better way of deciding. I'm in."
The other three exchanged glances. After a few seconds, they nodded in agreement. "Fine, we're in," Nino huffed.
The six stood in a circle, holding their fist out.
"Okay, ready?" Yotsuba beamed. "Paper, rock, si—"
"Wait! On 'three,' right?" Itsuki asked.
"No, on 'shoot,'" Nino scoffed. "You know how to play, right?"
Before they knew it, Nino and Itsuki were arguing back and forth again.
"Okay, okay! Stop!" Futaro waved his hands in front of the two of them. "We'll go on 'shoot,' okay? Yotsuba, please start."
Yotsuba pretended to salute Futaro. "Yessir!"
"Paper, rock, scissors… Shoot!
A week later:
Futaro and the quintuplets rushed to the airport, making their way past security, stopping briefly so that Itsuki could get one last meat bun before boarding the plane.
"We just made it," Futaro slumped in his seat, trying to control his breathing. "Thank you for carrying our stuff, Yotsuba."
She had run ahead, carrying most of their carry-on luggage, when they realized that they were at risk of not making the flight. Secretly Futaro blamed Nino for the crime of being an over-packer. Yotsuba alone carried all their carry-on's and sprinted to their plane without so much as breaking a sweat. Her physical fitness is unparalleled. Something that Futaro both envied and admired.
He clutched his side, "I should really work on my cardiovascular strength," he closed his eyes—tiny bubbles floated behind his eyelids.
Yotsuba poked his cheek, "you can always train with me, Uesugi-san." He opened his eyes and was met again with those paralyzing blue eyes. Futaro held his breath, glancing at her lips, attracting him closer.
"Shi shi shi, Uesugi-san, you dog! We're in public," Yotsuba giggled.
Futaro quickly averted his eyes. The moment was totally ruined.
The quintuplets and Futaro settled into their seats, but they couldn't contain their anticipation.
"I can't believe we're going to Hawaii!" Itsuki jumped on her seat. Her childish glee reminded Futaro that she and Yotsuba were sisters. "I can't wait to try all the shaved ice!"
"I can't believe Futaro-kun suggested Hawaii to begin with." Ichika reached over his seat and rustled his hair.
"So unlike him."
Miku stifled a laugh, "I suppose it doesn't really match Futaro's style."
Ichika leaned closer to Futaro. "Could it be that Futaro-kun just wants to see us in our swimwear, hmmm?"
"Stop it," he leaned away from her.
"Everyone, please take their seats. We are preparing for take-off," the pilot mumbled over the intercom.
Miku had already put on her headphones and was staring out the window. Nino was reading a magazine that she had brought with her. Futaro could have been imagining things, but occasionally he'd feel like her eyes were on him. But he didn't want to bring too much attention to that.
Yotsuba and Futaro have been dating for four months, and Nino was the slowest to accept their relationship. And things were far from good, but they were getting better. He often avoided spending time alone with her for the rest of the school year following the school festival. Futaro leaned back on his seat and turned his attention to the runway, which had started to pass by slowly.
It's only been four months, and graduation was a mess too. Wounds might still be kind of fresh.
"Psst," Yotsuba leaned in and whispered in his year, "Ichika was wrong, right? You don't just want to see us in our swimwear?"
"What kind of question is that?!" Futaro scoffed.
Fu-Futaro, I wouldn't mind if you looked though," she kissed his cheek softly. She wrapped her fingers around his and clutched his hand. Her cheeks flushed red, and she averted her eyes.
"Not Uesugi-san?" He asked.
"I've been thinking about it for a while. I don't know why I always called you Uesugi-san," she puzzled. "Maybe I was scared. But my sisters all know you are close to us— close to me. It's kind of weird to refer to you in such a cold way."
She nodded as if she was making a resolution with herself. "I'm your girlfriend, after all, Fu-ta-ro." She emphasized every syllable of his name.
It was several seconds later before Futaro realized he'd forgotten to breathe. It was the first time she'd called him by his first name. He felt his heart leap into this throat; he bit back the urge to smile.
He leaned back onto his seat, Yotsuba's hand in his. He thought of Itsuki and her frustrating hardheadedness, of Miku and her newfound confidence, of Nino's unshakable will, Ichikas bottomless care, and all the quintuplets capacity for love.
The quintuplets were Futaro's greatest source of chaos in his life. Still, besides his family, one thing was apparent: they are the most important thing in his life.
They sat in peace as the plane rose to a travel elevation. The pilot went through their usual announcements that were lost to the garbled intercom.
"Still," Yotsuba added, bringing Futaro back to attention, "It's amazing that dad helped us pay for all this. It couldn't have been cheap. I feel kind of guilty."
Futaro nodded, "don't worry about it too much. You know that this is a present for all of you. It's a shame that he couldn't join."
"Yeah, that would have been nice," she said. "But things have been getting better at home lately. He's spending more time with us. I know that Nino is happy."
Yotsuba prodded his cheek, "I guess no more sneaking in unannounced for you, Futaro!"
Futaro coughed. "It's nothing like that!"
It wasn't long before the dull hum of the airplane's engine lulled them all to sleep as they headed to this first big adventure.
Several hours later, the plane touched down in Honolulu. Futaro was still groggy from sleeping nearly the whole flight, and the hot, humid Hawaiian air wasn't doing him any favors.
"Ugh, it so hoooooooot!" Cried, Nino.
"No complaining! We have to check into the hotel asap!" Itsuki cried out, rushing past the others.
Yotsuba touched her chin and tilted her head, "What's up with her?"
"The in-flight dinner was pretty small," Ichika chucked. "She's probably hungry."
Itsuki darted between a crowd of Chinese tourists, searching for the nearest food stall.
"Hey, wait!" Nino chased after her and pointed to the English sign nearest to them, "the sign says baggage claim is in the other direction!" She groaned in exasperation.
"Impressive. She's using her talents in real life," Futaro mumbled to himself. Nino's strongest subject was always English, and now it was on full display.
Nino turned back for a second and gave Futaro a tiny wink, acknowledging his compliment.
They rushed out of the airport and navigated their way to the parking lot, where they flagged a large taxi van.
Futaro never imagined that he'd be in a position where he would be able to travel abroad. Even more shocking than that was that he was traveling with friends and a girlfriend.
Futaro and Itsuki admired the wide roads and the large cars through the van's window. Yotsuba pondered why Americans drive on the other side of the road.
"It's because in Japan, the En—ow!" Futaro started but was interrupted by an elbow to the ribs from Itsuki.
"No teaching while on vacation," she wagged her finger at him. They arrived at the hotel shortly later. Futaro and the sisters shuffled all their luggage through the main doors, where the hotel staff promptly took them.
The hotel itself was far beyond Futaro's price range, but the Nino and Ichika had begged their dad to get a nice place as part of their graduation present. After hemming and hawing, their father chose to agree, but not before pulling Futaro aside and vaguely threatening him to "take care of his daughters."
"Wow, they're so polite!" Nino said excitedly. "Now, this is the kind of lifestyle that I can get used to."
"They have a breakfast and dinner buffet!" Itsuki and Yotsuba drooled at the mouth.
A few moments later, they checked in. How excessive, Futaro thought as they entered into the loft of the hotel room.
It was practically the size of an apartment. Complete with a kitchen, a living room, and two bedrooms.
"Woahhhhh! Look at this view!" Yotsuba blurted out, "Futaro! We can see the beach from here! Look! Look!" Yotsuba jumped around the hotel room with the energy of a rabbit, pulling Futaro along to admire the hotel room. He felt Nino and Miku's piercing cold stares behind him; he didn't dare look back.
"Uesugi-kun, can you please give me a hand?" Itsuki called his attention from the kitchen.
She seemed to be struggling to stock the fridge with drinks and other stuff that the quintuplets had brought for their vacation.
"I know it's not your intention, but please try to keep you and Yotsuba's intimacy down to a minimum. We're on vacation, and I want all of us to feel comfortable," she frowned up at him. "I don't want you to be getting any strange ideas."
"I have no intention of ruining anyone's good time. I want everyone to feel happy," Futaro said, slightly offended. He grabbed the remaining drinks on the countertop and slid them into the fridge, taking note to put Nino's water aside.
Itsuki turned around and jabbed his chest, "Isn't that what got us in this mess, to begin with?"
Futaro chose to ignore her and turned his back, choosing instead to check out the bedrooms.
He spotted Ichika and Miku standing in the hallway outside the two rooms, talking.
"Good timing Futaro-kun, we're trying to decide which room you and Yotsuba will share."
"Huh?"
Miku shifted her feet. "We're trying to be considerate to the couple," she uttered, deliberately avoiding looking at Futaro in the face.
"I don't think that'll be necessary." He grumbled, "You five divide the rooms amongst yourselves."
Ichika and Miku exchanged a look, "Futaro-kun," Ichika paused, "did something happen?"
"Are you and Yotsuba fighting? You seemed fine on the flight," Miku added.
Futaro shook his head, "no, it's nothing like that." He peaked over his shoulder to check if Itsuki and Nino were near. "I'm just trying to be considerate to everyone."
Ichika looked surprised, then changed to a knowing smile, "Futaro-kun, just do what you want."
She spun on the balls of her feet and entered one of the rooms, "Come Miku, share this room with me."
"Let's get up bright and early to go to the beach tomorrow, Futaro," Miku smiled at him. "The others may not say this out loud, but we're glad that you're here. You're stuck with us, you know?" She smiled at him, picked up her luggage, and followed Ichika, leaving him alone in the hallway.
He let out a deep sigh and turned back downstairs, leaving his luggage in the hallway.
Several hours later, he bolted upright.
"What the—" Futaro checked his watch.
After they settled into their hotel, Futaro decided to rest his eyes on the living room couch for a while before dinner. However, the sun was just peeking up over the horizon.
I slept right through dinner and through the night.
He noticed a soft weight on his thigh. It was Yotsuba snoring loudly. She had wrapped her arms around his waist and settled in the small gap between Futaro's body and the couch. On the floor directly below them, Nino and Miku were fast asleep, snuggling up close to each other.
Ichika and Itsuki were splayed out across the living room floor as well.
The girls had decided to nap alongside him.
"I guess jet lag is real," He mumbled.
That's strange. When did I start being able to tell them apart?
He smiled, touching Yotsuba's cheek with his thumb.
"There is love," and slumbered back into the warm couch.
The sun crept over the horizon, bathing the room in warm light through the large panel window of their hotel room. Futaro and the girls slowly rubbed the sleepy from their eyes and gathered their belongings. Together they drowsily walked downstairs, where they were welcomed by the hotel staff, who guided them into a private room with a large window overlooking the white sandy beach. A long table draped with a beautiful white tablecloth trimmed with gold at the front. An overwhelming assortment of dishes covered the long table. Full of exotic pastries and breakfast breads, several types of eggs, meats, and cheeses. Spaced out between the various types of breakfast foods were other local specialties from Hawaii that Futaro had trouble pronouncing. Futaro couldn't even make his way through the entire length of the table before his plate was already overflowing with food.
He wasn't the only one. Glancing behind him, five sets of twinkling blue eyes sparkled as they struggled to decide what foods they wanted to add to their plate.
"We just couldn't help ourselves could we," Itsuki chuckled as the six waddled out of the hotel and towards the beach, "we definitely overdid it."
"That's rich, coming from you," Futaro said, wincing at the pain in his stomach.
"Hey! I'm not the one who told you to get extra crab legs!"
"Actually, you were!"
"Now, now," Yotsuba interrupted them, "we must at least make it to the beach. A walk will do us good."
Walking to the beach was enough time to let their stomachs settle.
"Huh!? It's full of Japanese people?!" Nino said, once the beach was finally within view.
"I read on the travel book that Hawaii is a popular travel destination for Japanese people and that It's normal to see many Japanese people in Hawaii," Futaro replied.
Nino's shoulder sank, "It's like we didn't even leave Japan."
"Let's just try to enjoy ourselves," Miku consoled Nino. "Let's change into our swimsuits."
The girls left for the bathroom, Futaro decided to change as well. Futaro returned before the others had. When they finally did show up, they were wearing predictably delicate-looking swimsuits.
"You're in a dangerous spot, Futaro-kun," Ichika teased, "You might want to watch where your eyes look. Yotsuba might get upset with you." Ichika adjusted the straps of her yellow pinstripe bikini.
He glanced back at Yotsuba, who was wearing a sporty-looking green one-piece. Futaro's eyes wandered; the swimsuit suited her figure and hugged all the curves on her body. She showed less skin than her sisters, but it was only more alluring to Futaro. He should have known that this was inevitably going to happen. Like a bee attracted to a flower, his eyes couldn't be restrained.
"Futaro~"
"Uesugi-kun…"
Both Miku and Itsuki pouted at him.
Futaro noticed Miku's light blue bikini top and darker marine-toned bottoms with a wrap-around skirt contrasted Itsuki bright red dripping bikini top and long flowy skirt.
He shook his head, four other girls beside him pouted fiercely. Meanwhile, Yotsuba tried her best to make herself seem as small as possible.
"Umm, Futaro, maybe don't stare at me so intensely," Yotsuba blushed.
Suddenly a rogue arm smacked him in the back. It was Nino who somehow was glittering in the sunlight.
"Of course, he's going to stare at the five of us. We're all beautiful! Can you blame him?" Nino's all-black swimsuit and sunglasses gave her a much more mature look. She tilted her sunglasses down, "but please try and control yourself?"
"Noted," Futaro grunted. Feeling sufficiently embarrassed to want to turn back to the hotel.
Yotsuba got close and took Futaro by the hand, "I want all of us to get in the water! It's supposed to be nice and warm right now!" She yanked Futaro by the arm leading him away from the others. "I'm really happy you noticed me by the way." She grinned.
Soon sprinted to the water, letting the warm sunbathe their backs and the wet sand wade between their toes.
"Ooh, It feels so nice!" Ichika hummed.
"Right! The water is warm like it's from one of those exclusive indoor pools at fancy hotels!" Nino said.
"Hey Futaro," He turned to face Miku. He was immediately struck with a powerful splash of water almost knocking him off balance.
"Hey!" He spat saltwater. He knelt and shoved both his hands into the water elbow deep and swung with all his might. The resulting splash caught Miku… and also Nino and Itsuki. All three now sported matted and flat hair.
"So it's war, you declare!?" Miku shouted. And the six started splashing water back and forth at each other. Yotsuba took a direct hit from Nino, knocking her into the water. Ichika bravely sacrificed herself to absorb a splash meant for Futaro from Itsuki.
"Okay, okay!" Nino held out her hands to both sides, declaring a cease-fire. Her bangs were stuck to her forehead, and her once bouncy hair was now flat and soaked. She blinked several times, probably praying that her waterproof mascara was as good as advertised.
"I want to play that game we never can at the pool. Which one was that?"
Yotsuba shot out of the water like she had grown fins. "Oh! Chicken! I've wanted to play that for ages!"
Futaro looked back and forth between Nino and Yotsuba, confused by what they had suggested.
Itsuki noticed his silent pleas for an explanation. "There's five of us. Usually, one of us would get left out."
It was such an obvious answer that He couldn't believe that the answer didn't come to him sooner.
"Yeah, we have even teams now," Ichika prodded her chin. "But how should we divide up the teams? Futaro-kun? Would you like to be on my team? We both know how much you enjoy my th—"
"Yotsuba!" He shouted, "I want Yotsuba!" He flushed red, his eyes silently begging Ichika not to finish her sentence. She giggled and put her index finger to her lips in a "shush" fashion.
"Itsuki's eyes lingered on Futaro, "well, I figured was the obvious pair," she said. "Then Ichika and I and Nino and Miku?" The rest of the sisters agreed and split off into their teams. Yotsuba pulled herself close to Futaro. He admired how fluidly she moved through the water. "Having fun?" She asked.
Futaro swiped his bangs from his forehead and nodded.
Quintuplets are such a pain. Futaro sighed in relief.